This Cat Has Claws

34: Shot

Landon's POV

I hadn't even realized I'd been shot until I woke up in bed and found Grams hovering over me. My eyes opened slowly as they adjusted to the light that was pouring in through the windows. The bed I was on was fairly comfortable, so I guessed that I wasn't in a hospital, or at least not the one Grams works at. When Grams noticed I was awake, she moved away from the bed and sat in a chair next to me.

"How are you feeling? Anything hurt too bad?" she asked.

"Fine for someone who got shot. I don't know how Marley was so completely fine when she got shot. It hurt so bad I couldn't even tell where I was hurting from," I groaned.

"Is that Landon's voice I hear?" I heard a familiar voice yell outside of the room. I would question how she heard me, but then I remembered she can turn into a cat. Cats have good hearing, right? Well, I wouldn't put it past her abilities. I turned my head as the door to my room swung open and an excited Marley pranced into the room. She gave me an apologetic smile and stood next to Grams.

"I'll give you some privacy, for now. We'll all need to talk later when Grandpa gets back," Grams said and got up to leave the room.

Marley nodded her head but didn't say anything. I guess we'll have to talk about why I got shot. That didn't bother me so much as how Grams and Grandpa would react and say did. Marley sat down in the chair and held my hand in hers. It felt nice to have some human contact.

"How long have I been here?" I asked.

"A few days. This isn't a regular hospital. It's one that my family uses since we don't like to explain our injuries to normal doctors," she said.

"Yeah, I figured that was the case. This bed is actually comfortable, so that was almost a dead giveaway."

Marley's smile widened. She got up and leaned over to give me a kiss. "I've missed you," she said quietly. "It was terrifying to watch you get shot and then all the blood. Usually blood doesn't affect me, but when it's yours and there's so much of it..."

"It's okay, I'm okay," I assured her while caressing her cheek that still hovered close to my own. "What happened afterwards?"

"Mom and Dad took care of everyone else by the time I found them. I took care of Mack."

"Took care of as in killed?"

Marley looked down and avoided my eyes for a second before she brought them back up to meet mine and answered.

"Yeah. not only did he shoot you just to get at me, but he tried to kill me and himself with some poison gas. Actually, I just got discharged."

"That's good to hear. I don't really know how I feel about Mack being dead, though."

"Okay. you don't need to have a clear answer, now or ever, just don't let it bother you too much, okay?"

"I won't. I love you Marley."

"I love you too."

Marley's smile came back and she leaned down again to kiss me. I loved how it felt when her lips were on mine. I wished I wasn't stuck in this bed or else I'd let our bodies do the rest of the talking. We talked and cuddled as much as my injuries would allow for another hour until Grams and Grandpa interrupted us to talk. Marley was about to get up off the bed but Grams told her to stay put.

"We're just here to talk about what happened," Grams started. "I am glad that you and your family have been so accommodating to us and honest as well, but I am still not happy that we have to be in this situation in the first place."

"I understand," Marley said seriously. "I never wanted to put Landon in that kind of danger, or any kind of danger."

"It's not necessarily your fault, and I know that, but you live in that kind of world, so I just worry endlessly about Landon, and about you. You are a very dear person to Landon and to us."

Marley smiled warmly. I couldn't help but lace my fingers with hers and bring her hand up to my lips for a quick kiss. She was so gorgeous with just about anything she did, but I loved it the most when she smiled at me like that.

"Plus, I was the one who wanted to go along with her family in the first place. I knew what I was getting myself into, Grams," I added.

"Yes, you're right. It's not like you are still a child anymore. I just thought it would be best if Grandpa and I voiced our thoughts now instead of burying them deep inside us and exploding later. Honesty is very important in any relationship, and if Marley is going to continue to be with us, we'll need to be honest with one another," Grams said with a smile.

"We will respect your decisions, Landon, but that doesn't mean we'll let you off the hook from our opinions," Grandpa said.

After they had said their piece, Grams and Grandpa left the room. Marley snuggled closer to me and kissed my cheek. I ran one of my hands through her hair and playing with it. Marley and I fell asleep on the bed together. It wasn't the most comfortable position to sleep in, but we made it work. I wrapped my arm around her back to make sure she wouldn't fall off and she placed her hand on my chest and nuzzled her head next to my own.

I was discharged from the black market hospital after a week. My wound was mostly healed, enough so I didn't need to stay cooped up in the hospital, so they basically kicked me out. The afternoon I left someone came into my room, handed me a bag of things and told me to leave. This place definitely wasn't a regular hospital. I still didn't really know where I was since I hadn't gone anywhere while I was here. So, when I was told to leave, I was speechless but nonetheless grabbed the bag I was given and walked out of the room. Luckily, Marley was waiting for me just outside the room so I didn't have to go through the hospital by myself.

"So how did you like your stay?" Marley asked sarcastically.

"Oh, it was very nice," I answered. "Very good customer service, I might just want to come here again."

Marley's laugh echoed throughout the hallway. Some patients turned their heads towards us to see what was happening then went back to their business once they realized it was nothing of their concern. I followed Marley out of the hospital and we got in her dad's car. Marley drove us to her place. There was no one else home, probably because her roommates were somewhere on campus in a classroom.

"So, what would you like to do now that you are free?" Marley asked me temptingly.

Instead of answering with words I placed my hands on her waist and the back of her neck as I kissed her. Marley responded eagerly by wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me closer. I trailed kisses down her neck and collarbone, my hands roaming under her clothes and onto her bareskin. She moaned and we quickly took our clothes off to continue.